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Published: June 27th 2006
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Thai Dancers and Me
Picture with all the dancers from the dinner show dressed in their tribal costumes. I'm of course representing the Farrang tribe in the middle. At the end of my last entry we were leaving the border of Burma and heading back into the town of Chiang Rai. After a quick stop at our hotel we headed back out to dinner for a little sampling of northern Thai food. One of the things this area is particurlarly known for is eating sticky rice. Now I'm sure you're thinking the asian style rice we're used to eating at home is already sticky, but it's nothing like this stuff. I don't know if it just goes through a different process or is an all together different grain, but the sticky rice is very glutenous and comes served in a ball that you basically rip pieces off of to pick up the food on your plate. The rest of the food was also slightly different than down south as I noticed a lot more use of the darker red curry and savory spices. All in all the food was very good, and to top it off the restaurant also offered a performance of traditional Thai music and dancing while we ate, so a good all around cultural experience.
The best part of Chiang Rai however came right after
Group photo at C&Cs
I'm sure Dr. Lash would love it if we send this one back to Loyola. dinner when we were dropped off at the local night market. While these markets can be found all over thailand (with some rather large ones in Bangkok), this was the first one we had been to due to that whole class thing during the week. The main part of the market extended down two closed off streets lined with vendors and an additional open area (probably a parking lot during the day) full of food vendors and live music entertainment. The atmosphere was surprisingly relaxed and from the looks of the surprisingly local croud I think it was actually a hot spot for couples to spend their friday night out. There were literally vendors selling everything, from beautiful handmade crafts/housewares, to clothes, to typical street market junk, and everything inbetween. I think by the end of the night we had all covered the whole thing at least twice, and needless to say we did a good job as a group of supporting the local Thai economy. Within a few hours I had more than made up for my lack of shopping in my first week here (even the girls in the group were quite impressed).
On the way home
Seven headed snake staircase
This is the magnificant staircase leading the rest of the way up to the Wat on the mountain. from the market a bunch of us were tempted to call it a day by stoping at one of the many massage places by our hotel, but after dropping off our goodies Ben came up with an even better idea....pool party! It was a little late and the pool was likely closed, but we figured as long as we were quiet enough we'd have time for a quick dip to cool off before bed. So after changing into our suits we headed down to the court yard pool deck and were pleasantly surprised to see how nice it actually was and more importantly were excited to see there was a diving board! So the next hour was spent horsing around and cooling off in the water and was a perfect ending to our evening.
The next morning we left the hotel bright and early as we had a 4+ hour bus ride to Chiang Mai where we'd spend the next day and a half before flying back to Bangkok. The scenery along the way was beautiful as we drove through the mountains and lush countryside. Along the way we also made a few entertaining stops, one of which was
Wat on the Mountain - Chiang Mai
This is the magnificant outside of the Wat on the mountain. at the Thai restaurant chain Cabbage & Condoms. While C&C might sound a little odd for an eating establishment, the chain was started in the 80's with the idea of educating the Thai population on the use of condoms as a way to prevent the spread of AIDS. The campaign was highly successful and the owner is now referred to as the king of condoms all over the reigon.
Once we got to Chiang Mai we checked into this absolutely georgous hotel that many of us were tempted not to leave for the afternoon. But of course our weekend schedule did not allow for too many breaks and after checking in we were back on the bus to visit yet another Wat. This one however was well worth the trip. Situated on top of a mountain the views were specactular, and the Wat itself stunning. While I can't remember the name I can tell you that this was one of the most important Wats in northern thailand as you could tell there were many large groups of Thai people and even monks from other parts of the region making the pilgrimage to pray. I even made a donation so
Fortune telling Buddha
Here you shake the cup and pick up the first stick that falls out. The number on the stick tells you which slot to pick up your fortune from. Much more fun than a fortune from a cookie :) I could take part in a little ritual which ended with me getting my "fortune" from a very holly Buddha.
After the Wat we had about 4 hours free before dinner and the group unanimously decided to hit the hotel pool which was complete with a nice bar and "cabanna boys" to bring us all drinks. That night we went to another wonderful northern Thai restaurant where we got to try several more local dishes including this wonderful whole deep fried fish (I've so got to find that one at home). After dinner we made a stop at the larger Chiang Mai night market. Compared to the night before however this was more like the Swap-o-rama with about 5 different types of stalls (3 of which were crappy t-shirt places) simply repeated over and over for a 6+ block stretch. It was also extremely hot as the market pathways were extremely narrow and covered. So after about an hour and a half of sweating we decided we were shopped out and while most of the group went out to do drinking, Chandra and I decided to call it a night and walk back to the hotel. While I was nice to be inside I still wasn't exactly tired, so I figured what better way to cap off the night than to get a massage. But instead of having to leave, this nice hotel had roomservice. So for a mere 400 Bhat ($10) I got an hour long massage in the comfort of my room which was the perfect way to end a long day.
That's all for now, I actually have to go study for my final exam now, but I'll fill you in later on the next part of our northern adventure which was by far the highlight of our whole trip. In the mean time if you haven't done so all ready go to my main page and check out the gallery where I've posted additional pictures for you all to see.
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Mom
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love da pics
Where do you find time to enter all this stuff? And didn't you just have a midterm and now you're having a final? My, my we must be studying hard. But then this trip is an education in itself. You realize I'm just jealous. I want one of those $10 massages. It's going to be tough to come back to reality.